A large number of infrared thermometers are known in the art such as medical thermometers and thermometers for use determining the temperature of foods and drinks, such as wine. Representative infrared thermometers are described in Gerlitz, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2003/0016728 A1; Gerlitz, U.S. Pat. No. 6,811,306; Fraden, U.S. Pat. No. 6,751,497; Gerlitz, U.S. Pat. No. 6,435,711; Fukura, U.S. Pat. No. 6,336,742; Barthelemy, U.S. Pat. No. 5,991,652; Suszynski, U.S. Pat. No. 4,993,424; Wood, U.S. Pat. No. 4,895,164; Ko, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2004/0095985 A1; Jang, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2003/0067958 A1; Pompei, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2002/0186745 A1, the disclosure of each of which are incorporated in their entirety herein.
One known infrared thermometer intended for use with wine consists of an elongate housing having an opening at a distal end with a temperature sensor operatively associated with the opening whereby the sensor can be used to sense the temperature of wine or other objects. One problem with this configuration is the infrared sensor is subject to contamination when not in use. One known device provides a cover for the infrared sensor, but the cover must be manually removed from the elongate housing in order to expose the sensor, much like a cap must be removed from a pen. Known infrared wine thermometers also typically require depressing of a button in order to actuate the infrared sensor. Known devices require depressing the actuator button perpendicular to an axis of the housing, which can be cumbersome to a user.
The present invention is intended to overcome one or more of the problems discussed above.